Medic and Nurse and Medical School

[nontraditionalperson]

For those that have gone to school to become a paramedic (not just EMT) or nurse, how did your classes and clinical experiences benefit you in medical school? For the first two years, did your science and healthcare classes and clinical experiences help with the classes? Did your background help during your clinical rotations? How did being a paramedic or nurse help you outside your courses? If you could redo you background, would you have taken more science courses? Also, I'd like to read about any specific examples, if you have any.

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[McPoyle]

I was a paramedic for ~8yrs prior to med school. It helped in no way the first two years. Sure some of the terminology and very very very basic physiology was at least familiar, still I can't say it gave me any advantage. 3rd and 4th year the benefit was not very tangible but I do feel like it was easier for me to make quicker assessments (i.e. Sick vs not sick) and easier to build rapport as I already had experience doing this. I would hesitate to say it was a huge advantage though.

I don't think I'd change much about my background. One thing I personally would maybe have done differently is majored in something outside the sciences. I majored in biology largely because it came easily to me, part of we wished I would have majored in something more abstract that challengers me more...


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[nontraditionalperson]

I was a paramedic for ~8yrs prior to med school. It helped in no way the first two years. Sure some of the terminology and very very very basic physiology was at least familiar, still I can't say it gave me any advantage. 3rd and 4th year the benefit was not very tangible but I do feel like it was easier for me to make quicker assessments (i.e. Sick vs not sick) and easier to build rapport as I already had experience doing this. I would hesitate to say it was a huge advantage though.

I don't think I'd change much about my background. One thing I personally would maybe have done differently is majored in something outside the sciences. I majored in biology largely because it came easily to me, part of we wished I would have majored in something more abstract that challengers me more...


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So, when you got to pharmacology, did you have an easier time recognizing and understanding certain medications from administering them? What about performing physical examinations? I'd like to hear from other nurses and paramedics that went to medical school.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

So, when you got to pharmacology, did you have an easier time recognizing and understanding certain medications from administering them? What about performing physical examinations? I'd like to hear from other nurses and paramedics that went to medical school.

This is so naive. If you want to go to medical school, go to medical school. Don't become a paramedic or nurse before to get some type of edge, and if you have already done that program, then this is further irrelevant as you'll find out when you get to medical school.

 

[cardio7]

Become a paramedic only if you want to make it your career. Paramedic school offers an algorithmic "cookbook" method of treating patients that is very different from a physician's practice of medicine. If you want to be a doctor you are better off taking science classes instead, or becoming a basic EMT.

With that said, working as a paramedic HAS benefitted me more than I was expecting, but not in some earth-shattering way that places me well ahead of my peers. My paramedic classes only scratched the surface of the physiology I've learned in med school so far, so that part was only helpful as basic background info. Like the first poster, it has definitely helped make patient assessments go more smoothly and helped me build rapport with patients. I noticed the biggest boost with some of the practical content:

-Interpreting basic ECGs and 12-leads
-Cardiac drugs (ACLS is never going away!)
-Identification and treatment of major, common illnesses: CHF, asthma, COPD, chronic bronchitis, etc.
-Psych/neuro disorders and treatment
-Types of head/brain injuries
-Basic OB/GYN
-IV starts and first aid skills
-Formulating treatment plans for standardized (fake) patients
-Confidence with presenting patient cases to a preceptor

As for learning drugs and physical exams, those were definitely made easier but taught me that I still have A LOT to learn. The EMT-P curriculum taught me when to give a drug but not WHY to give a drug or how it actually works in the body. The neuro exam I had learned was a joke. There is a huge overall knowledge gap that med school will fill. The two fields are related, but it's not worth the time or expense if med school is your goal.

 

[nontraditionalperson]

Become a paramedic only if you want to make it your career. Paramedic school offers an algorithmic "cookbook" method of treating patients that is very different from a physician's practice of medicine. If you want to be a doctor you are better off taking science classes instead, or becoming a basic EMT.

With that said, working as a paramedic HAS benefitted me more than I was expecting, but not in some earth-shattering way that places me well ahead of my peers. My paramedic classes only scratched the surface of the physiology I've learned in med school so far, so that part was only helpful as basic background info. Like the first poster, it has definitely helped make patient assessments go more smoothly and helped me build rapport with patients. I noticed the biggest boost with some of the practical content:

-Interpreting basic ECGs and 12-leads
-Cardiac drugs (ACLS is never going away!)
-Identification and treatment of major, common illnesses: CHF, asthma, COPD, chronic bronchitis, etc.
-Psych/neuro disorders and treatment
-Types of head/brain injuries
-Basic OB/GYN
-IV starts and first aid skills
-Formulating treatment plans for standardized (fake) patients
-Confidence with presenting patient cases to a preceptor

As for learning drugs and physical exams, those were definitely made easier but taught me that I still have A LOT to learn. The EMT-P curriculum taught me when to give a drug but not WHY to give a drug or how it actually works in the body. The neuro exam I had learned was a joke. There is a huge overall knowledge gap that med school will fill. The two fields are related, but it's not worth the time or expense if med school is your goal.

Thanks for responding. I was only wondering how much students benefit from these experiences, since I hear stories often about the paramedics and nurses that excel during clinical rotations and some of their courses in the first two years. You mentioned that that it had some benefit, but I am also wondering how quickly your fellow classmates bridged those knowledge gaps, such as with EKGs.

 

[pericardium]

Become a paramedic only if you want to make it your career. Paramedic school offers an algorithmic "cookbook" method of treating patients that is very different from a physician's practice of medicine. If you want to be a doctor you are better off taking science classes instead, or becoming a basic EMT.

With that said, working as a paramedic HAS benefitted me more than I was expecting, but not in some earth-shattering way that places me well ahead of my peers. My paramedic classes only scratched the surface of the physiology I've learned in med school so far, so that part was only helpful as basic background info. Like the first poster, it has definitely helped make patient assessments go more smoothly and helped me build rapport with patients. I noticed the biggest boost with some of the practical content:

-Interpreting basic ECGs and 12-leads
-Cardiac drugs (ACLS is never going away!)
-Identification and treatment of major, common illnesses: CHF, asthma, COPD, chronic bronchitis, etc.
-Psych/neuro disorders and treatment
-Types of head/brain injuries
-Basic OB/GYN
-IV starts and first aid skills
-Formulating treatment plans for standardized (fake) patients
-Confidence with presenting patient cases to a preceptor

As for learning drugs and physical exams, those were definitely made easier but taught me that I still have A LOT to learn. The EMT-P curriculum taught me when to give a drug but not WHY to give a drug or how it actually works in the body. The neuro exam I had learned was a joke. There is a huge overall knowledge gap that med school will fill. The two fields are related, but it's not worth the time or expense if med school is your goal.

Thanks for this post. I don't mean to hijack the thread, but I'd like to take the question further. I just finished field internship and I'm expecting my paramedic card in a few weeks, but I will also be starting med school in about 3 months. I hope to work as a medic for a little bit and I was just wondering if you had any advice on how to make the most of my experience both in the field and once school starts?

Thanks.

 

[alpinism]

I was a paramedic for ~8yrs prior to med school. It helped in no way the first two years. Sure some of the terminology and very very very basic physiology was at least familiar, still I can't say it gave me any advantage. 3rd and 4th year the benefit was not very tangible but I do feel like it was easier for me to make quicker assessments (i.e. Sick vs not sick) and easier to build rapport as I already had experience doing this. I would hesitate to say it was a huge advantage though.

I don't think I'd change much about my background. One thing I personally would maybe have done differently is majored in something outside the sciences. I majored in biology largely because it came easily to me, part of we wished I would have majored in something more abstract that challengers me more...


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Completely agree.

With the exception of some basic terminology, physiology, and pharmacology very little of what you learn in paramedic school is helpful for med school.

The biggest advantage is just being comfortable talking to patients and dealing with difficult situations.

 

[alpinism]

Thanks for this post. I don't mean to hijack the thread, but I'd like to take the question further. I just finished field internship and I'm expecting my paramedic card in a few weeks, but I will also be starting med school in about 3 months. I hope to work as a medic for a little bit and I was just wondering if you had any advice on how to make the most of my experience both in the field and once school starts?

Thanks.

Go work on a busy inner city squad that sees a ton of crazy **** every shift.

Once med school starts maybe you'll be able to squeeze in one or two shifts a week if you're a genius and are completely crushing your classes. Otherwise I wouldn't expect to work at all during med school. In any event it's a shame that you went through all the trouble of getting the medic certification just to work for one summer before starting a new career.

 

[nontraditionalperson]

So, I'd still like to read more about the experiences paramedics and nurses have had. I'd also like to know about the opposite, where that background put you at a disadvantage. For example, did you learn any bad habits that medical school had to undo? In retrospect, maybe it would be also good to hear from medics, as well.

 

[racerwad]

So, I'd still like to read more about the experiences paramedics and nurses have had. I'd also like to know about the opposite, where that background put you at a disadvantage. For example, did you learn any bad habits that medical school had to undo? In retrospect, maybe it would be also good to hear from medics, as well.

Dude, you've cross-posted this in two forums and gotten some great responses (not just my own!). It sounds pretty clear that while slightly helpful, the benefits of going to paramedic school and working as a medic are not worth the hassle and opportunity costs. The only exception perhaps is if you truly love being a medic and don't mind the lost income.

In my own personal experience, it was all positive, as long as you didn't delude yourself into thinking that somehow being a medic put you at some sort of great advantage over your peers. I was better at a lot of things than many of my peers, but I don't think that it made up for other gaps in my knowledge or experience and if I were to just try and coast by, then everything would be a waste. Moreover, despite the experience I had, it still paled in comparison to some other med students so strutting around like I'm some kind of hot **** would only last for a nanosecond.

If you want to be a doctor, go to medical school. If you want to be a paramedic, go to paramedic school. One does not prepare one for the other and going to paramedic school to "help" with medical school, won't.

 

[group_theory]

Closing this thread due to cross-posting.

Please visit the open thread here (which has more posts than this thread)
https://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/nurses-and-paramedics.1198656/